Leveling Up Your CrossFit Affiliate: 5 Lessons from the NE Gathering

I was recently invited to present at the NorthEast CrossFit Affiliate Gathering at Chimney Rock CrossFit in Bound Brook, NJ. I have seven years of experience as a CrossFit affiliate owner and I’m the Content Marketing Manager for Wodify. Which means my weird combo of gym ownership experience and content strategy skills made me the perfect person to talk about how affiliates can create content to increase revenue, retention and growth.

So I showed up that day excited to just help other gym owners. But a magical thing happens when CrossFit affiliate owners get together. In fact, I can’t think of one CrossFit-related event I’ve ever attended where this magic didn’t occur. From The CrossFit Games to events like AffiliateCon, the Two-Brain Summit, the Gym Accelerator Summit, and now these Affiliate Gatherings, the venue doesn’t matter like the people do. I’ll do my best to describe it through the lessons below, but mostly IYKYK.

5 Lessons to Level Up Your CrossFit Affiliate

Here are five unexpected lessons I learned that day in New Jersey that you can use for the long-term growth of your affiliate.

1. The members in these CrossFit Affiliates are the real winners

As a little backstory, I used to own a content marketing company focused on helping gyms grow, and I had done this presentation several times in the past via Zoom. Content is one of those things that I know gym owners generally do not get hyped about. So even though I try to make it fun, I recognize that it takes a special level of commitment to register for a content webinar online.

That commitment tells me one thing in particular: you’re willing to do things you don’t want to in order to make your gym better.

Take that idea and multiply it by 100 for an in-person event like the CrossFit affiliate gatherings. You have a million things to do and “free time” isn’t in your vocabulary. I truly get it. Spending a full day outside of your gym to learn and connect is not only a massive commitment, but it’s also proof that you care.

And the biggest beneficiaries of your commitment and care? Your community. Members of a gym whose owner is dedicated to improvement are the lucky ones.

2. Take notes from any CrossFit affiliate owner that’s crushing it

​During the NE CrossFit Affiliate Gathering, I listened to the owners of CrossFit Odin (Jason and Allison Jachowski) describe the incredible system they’ve built for hiring and retaining coaches. It obviously took years of work and intentionally making their core values a non-negotiable. Would it be easy for an affiliate owner to compare and feel defeated? For sure. But if you reframe your mindset to know that it’s possible and commit to what it took to get there, it becomes a roadmap instead of a blocker.

We’ve all heard success stories from gyms that are crushing it. Some of them give us pause as we think, ‘How the hell did they do that?’ And just like with our lifts and WOD scores, the comparison game can go one of two ways.

Anytime comparing your lift or your business success to another person is defeating, we’re going in the wrong direction. Instead of focusing on how far you’ve come, comparisons make you focus on how far you still have to go. On the other hand, when you hear a gym owner share the details about how they’re crushing it, take is as proof that it can be done. That impossible mountain? The top of it can be reached.

3. There needs to be more of these events

Two things I loved about this event were that it was jam-packed with helpful info about growing an affiliate, despite being only one day, and it was local, so convenient for most of the attendees.

Don’t get me wrong, the three-day conventions in major metropolitan cities are beneficial and impactful in their own right. But there’s something about these smaller gatherings that a CrossFit affiliate owner can attend in their own region. There were inside jokes about the area. They knew of the other gyms being represented in the room. They collectively gave me shit about being a midwesterner discovering the New Jersey turnpike for the first time.

It was fun and the energy was contagious. I believe that energy comes from three things:

1. Learning new and proven business ideas gives you an action plan and confidence.
2. It’s not only wins that are shared but struggles as well. So you realize you’re not alone.
3. Seeing CrossFit HQ invest in these events is proof of the importance of helping affiliates succeed.

4. The right content can skyrocket your revenue and retention

You didn’t think I’d let the opportunity to talk about content pass right on by, did you? Of course this is a shameless plug but if you’re a CrossFit affiliate owner, content can grow your gym. In fact, the right content can help you:

• Attract new members
• Build brand authority and trust
• Save money
• Stand out from the competition
• Improve member retention
• Promote and upsell additional services
• Analyze data to adjust and grow

If you want to get started today, focus on optimizing your Google Business Page. Then go download the SEO Cheat Sheet for Fitness Business Owners. Just these two things on their own will put you head and shoulders above your competition.

5. Burnout is a real thing (that none of us are talking about)

One of the best lessons we’ve all learned from doing CrossFit is that we can do hard things. Unfortunately, that has translated into earning gym owner burnout like it’s a badge of honor. We all feel it at some point. Some of us talk about it. Most of us don’t.

I sold my gym in 2024 (don’t worry, I bought another one in 2025 and I’m back in the game) after two years of refusing to admit I was completely burned out. At the time, if I’d had someone to talk to about it, or to make me see that I wasn’t alone, my path might’ve been different.

That’s why I’m passionate now about encouraging CrossFit affiliate owners to speak up. I’m always here to support you and my inbox is always open at monica.hilton@wodify.com. And I also encourage you to pay it forward and connect with other owners. Remember, we’re in this together.

Upcoming CrossFit Affiliate Owner Gatherings

Various CrossFit affiliate representatives are currently planning more of these gatherings around the world. First, I understand that your first thought is, ‘I don’t have the time.’ But prioritizing an event like this to learn, get new ideas, and connect with other owners will pay off for you, your staff, your members, and your business.

SouthEast Affiliates: If you’re attending the upcoming gathering on November 14th in North Carolina, the content party is coming your way. I’ll see you there!